DVoid
by uhnope
Summary: A void has entered the Chao Gardens. Now the essence of the Chao seem to vanishing from existence. Shade and his friends now risk everything in an attempt to survive, and do what has never been done before: venture beyond the Gardens. *Only Chao.*
1. Chapter 1: Nightmares

_**Hailfire Vulpes: New story! Yaaay! Ahem, anyways, this fic contains Chao, and only Chao. Because Chao are epic.**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own the Chao species, nor anything related to Chao. **_

_**This is my first attempt at a Chao fic, and I don't know too much, so forgive me if I make any mistakes!**_

_**All characters are O.C's. I may accept other O.C's if you want.**_

_**Anyhoo, let's get on with the story!**_

~Chapter 1~

Shade always liked the moon.

It was but pitch-black in the Dark Garden at night, and only bore the moon as a lonley light source. Shade liked darkness, but he also liked the light of the celestial body that hung over head.

He yawned. It was near midnight.

The Dark Chao rubbed his glaring eyes in weariness. He wanted to be sleeping, but not like he had been these past few days. The young Chao's dreams were haunted with malicious nightmares, each one more vivid than the last. Although upon wakefullness his memory of his nightmares were spotty, he bore an uncomfortable foreboding and fearfullness that kept him awake.

He had endured four hours into the night, not sleeping, and now felt its dragging effects. Shade yawned, shaking his head and settled on the flat-surfaced rock he sat on. Lying down on the cool stone, he fixed his perpetually glaring gaze on the moon, and felt his conscious slipping...

...

There was a crashing sound that boomed so loudly, it sounded as if it were about to break the sky apart. Shade jumped to his feet, small bat wings extended in his shock. He knew this was a nightmare, but the knowledge did not calm his growing fear.

Another crash, and this time it echoed painfully through the garden, thrumming painfully inside Shade's skull, making it feel as if a barbed metal pinball was voilently ricocheting on the inside of his head. He pushed his paws into his nonexistant ears, trying to block out the sound. He squeezed his eyes shut. The concussive sound seemed to get louder, until Shade thought the noise would break his entire being apart, when it stopped...replaced by a loud, fiercesome roar. Light shone from behind Shade's eyelids, and as he opened he saw a tower of flames before him.

Shade's instincts set off an alarm, and his black and white feet carried his dark gray body away from the deadly light. Another pillar of inferno loomed in his path, and he meandered swiftly. With the turn, he felt his arrow-pointed tail singed by the flames, and felt the pain of the burn. He thought there was no pain in dreams, but the sear was startlingly harsh.

More fire came around, and Shade noticed he was surrounded. Dismayed, he also realized the flames were too high to flutter over. He was trapped.

Shade backed into the ring center, trembling all over and wishing something, anything, would jolt him back to consciousness.

"_SHADE!_"

He blinked, and recognized the scream, "Blossom?" he cried back.

Suddenly, the flames turned black. Blackest black. Void black. The fire ring began to tighten around its snared vitim, much to his horror. The entire dream was going dark.

Shade dropped to the grass, shaking in fear, awaiting his iminent doom. He felt no heat from the fire, but a strange distortion in the air that slowly increased as the flames drew closer.

Then there was sunlight.

Shade blinked. The flames were gone, the darkness gone...

Shade sat up, grunting and rolling his stiff shoudlers. Another tormented night, another weary day.

He observed the dimly lit garden, seeing how it was still early in the morning. Not many Chao were awake.

"You seem uptight." Shade heard the seductive voice just behind him. Turning his head, he saw a feminine figure. She was jet black from head to foot, had dark, pointed ears, and a wide, toothy grin that stretched across her face. She possessed fins, indicating her ability to swim.

Shade shrugged a shoulder, not much willing to talk to her. He never much liked Gladys. Her demeanor and behavior suggested a devious being, even so for a Dark Chao. Shade was also aware of her crush on him. He wondered what had cursed him with that burden.

Shade felt her paws on his shoulders and he shuddered uncomfotably, "Please..." he murmured pushing her paws away. Gladys blinked at him,

"You're too tense. You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd say something's up with you." she said.

Shade shrugged again, "So what if I am? What does it matter to you?"

"Why do you say that?" the female asked.

"Because most of the time you're self-centered and staring at your reflection." he replied bluntly, "Look, it's my business and mine only. I think it would be best if you just stay out of it."

Gladys stared blankly at him, and characteristically flipped her bangs out of her face, "Fine." she said, and strode away.

Shade sighed, and realized he needed to vent. But Gladys wasn't the right Chao to vent to, and there was someone he needed to see.

Shade lept off his rock, and headed in the direction of the exit. He needed to go to see his half-sister.

Because he somehow knew these dreams were not just dreams.

_**Hailfire Vulpes: Like it? Read and Review please!**_

_**Flamers will be captured, torchured, and experimented on. Thank you. XD**_


	2. Chapter 2: Petrified

_**Hailfire Vulpes: Thanks for the reviews, and the entries for O.C's. Although I wasn't quite expecting so many at once so...for now I will not be accepting any more O.C's. Maybe later in the story...**_

_**Anyways, I want to make sure each Chao gets a decent part in the story, even if they are minor characters. Your Chao may come in later on too.**_

_**LOVEFAN13: Your Chao will be one of the main's friend. **_

_**Ficfan412: Your Chao may come on later. But not too much later.**_

_**Lunara the ara: Lunara will be a main. The other two will most likely be minor characters.**_

_**Thank you! And any entries for OC's will be ignored, since I just said I will not be accepting anymore for now.**_

_**And on with the story!**_

~Chapter 2~

Shade was just only entering the tunnel to the next garden over when he nearly bumped into two Chao he knew all too well. They were sisters, one Dark and one Hero. The Dark Chao, Kurai she was called, looked Shade over, "Going somewhere?"

Shade shrugged, "Maybe. What're you doing here?" he adressed Kurai's sister, Karu. Normally, Chao stuck to the garden that matched their type. They seldom strayed across the borders, and doing so could be risky.

Karu gave him a sly smile, "Just walking my sister home is all." she said innocently. Shade rolled his eyes,

"Whatever. Got to go." he said, and manuevered past them. Kurai followed him with her gaze,

"Where are you going?" she asked. Shade didn't turn around,

"Somewhere." he replied vaguely, and mostly because it was none of her damn business. He managed to reach the next garden without being stopped or interrupted by others.

He set foot in the Neutral Garden, wincing at how much sunnier and brighter this place was compared to the usually darker place he was used to. Feeling awkward and out-of-place, Shade stepped inside the border, gaze wandering idily through the clearing. A few of the "neutral" Chao met his gaze with hostile and confused expressions. He tried to force down the feeling that he didn't belong. He needed to find Blossom.

There she was. A pale purple Chao with pink limbs, wings, and orb that floated above her head. She was quietly talking to someone Shade had seen around this area, but never had gotten their name.

As soon as he was close enough, Shade murmured, "Blossom?"

The lavender and pink Chao looked up in response to her name, and smiled, "Hi, Shade." she greeted politely. The female Chao next to her smiled as well. By the looks of her fins, the unknown Chao was a swimmer. Unlike Blossom, and he, who were runners.

Shade cast a polite but awkward smirk back at the other Chao, and turned his attention back at Blossom, "I need to talk to you." he said with all seriousness.

Blossom knew her half-brother well enough to tell when he was truely bothered by something. She also cared enough to help him overcome whatever need overcoming. They were, after all, kin. Even if they had different fathers.

"Sure. I'll talk to you later, Berry." Blossom told her companion. The purplish-blue Chao nodded and paced a few feet away before turning around,

"Shall I wait for you?" she asked. Blossom waved at her,

"Just go without me. I'll catch up with you later." she said, and turned back to Shade, "What's up? I know you'd never leave the Dark Garden unless someone was dying or something."

Shade sighed, wondering briefly if what he had to admit was worth her time, "I had a nightmare." he said, "And before you question why that dragged me over here, I just wanted to say it didn't feel like just any ordinary nightmare."

Blossom nodded, "Go on."

Shade blinked, "It's been reoccurring too. Black fire everywhere, and this horrible sound...and..." he looked at her seriously, "You kept crying out for help, and I couldn't find you."

Blossom sighed sympathetically, "Reoccurring nightmares about fire and noises?" she asked. Shade winced, feeling stupid at the way she worded his problem, "I've never..."

"KARU!" the scream interrupted their conversation. Blossom and Shade whipped around. Kurai's voice was heard from down the tunnel. The half-siblings exchanged glances and ran down to investigate.

The Dark Chao female was bent over the Hero Chao, who was lying on her back, strangely stiff-looking. Her eyes stared at nothing. Shade skidded to a halt beside her, "What happened?" he asked.

Kurai, stared at him, blue eyes full of despair, "She was leaving, and then she just fell over..." she muttered. Shade blinked and looked down at the Chao on the floor. Her entire body looked as if it had frozen, arms stuck to her sides and eyes wide and staring blankly into the sky.

Blossom nudged Kurai, "We should take her to the hospital." she murmured. She looked at Shade expectantly, and he nodded, moving to pick up the frozen Hero Chao. She was surprisingly light, as if carrying a thin plank of wood. She didn't react to the touch of the other Chao.

...

Within a few minutes of arriving at the Chao hospital, they had Karu hooked up to several machines. The doctor Chao was examining them carefully, and within a few moments bore a horrified and confused look on his face. He looked at the group, "She has no pulse." he reported.

Kurai stiffened, "She can't be dead, can she? I mean...she's not going into a cocoon...an everything was fine up until now?" she cried. Shade blinked, studying Karu's body. She didn't appear to breathing, yet if she was really dead, she would have formed a grayish cocoon that would take her body away as well as her life. But she was still here.

The doctor Chao looked at the readings of the other machines, "No pulse, no heartbeat, no tempature, no signal that it's reading anything...I don't understand. It's as if she just...shut down."

Kurai gasped, looking at her afflicted sister miserably. There was a sound as the door opened, and Shade recognized the Chao Berry walk in. She looked at Blossom, "I was waiting and I saw you head towared the hospital. Anything wrong?"

Blossom sighed, "Something's wrong with Karu. She's..." she trailed off, bearing no words to describe the bizzare condition the Hero Chao was influenced by.

Berry looked worried, and leaned over to get a better view of the petrified Chao.

Shade looked at the doctor Chao, "Nothing at all?" he asked.

The doctor looked frazzled and quite bewildered, "I-I don't understand...nothing is giving me a valid reading at all."

Kurai whimpered as the words met her ears, "So...can't we do anything?" she asked forlornly. The doctor shook his head sadly.

Kurai sighed, and leaned over her sister's bed, gently closing her eyes with two fingers.

But as she moved her hand away, with such agility and suddeness, Karu's paw shot up and gripped Kurai's sharply. She gasped, as did everyone else.

Karu's expression was still blank, and she opened her eyes. Shade thought he saw her green irises tint darker for an instant. Kurai suddenly stiffened, and Karu's paw dropped away, leaving her to lay back in the same stiffened position she was in before.

Everyone looked to Kurai, who had frozed with one paw up from where she had been grabbed. Her eyes were empty, and her stiffened form fell forward.

Blossom quickly caught the ailing Chao, "Kurai?" she cried despairingly.

Kurai had been hooked up just like Karu, but her readings were invalid as well. The doctor shook his head, "I just don't understand it..."

Blossom sighed sympathetically, "Do you need some time alone to figure this out?" she offered sweetly. The doctor Chao shrugged and nodded, and the young Chao left.

Shade had forgotten about his nightmares effectively for once, and was now focused on the thought of the two frozen sisters as he sat on his flat-surfaced rock in his own garden. Why had they suddenly stiffened up like that and fall? Why didn't their bodies give any valid readings? It was like some sort of new disease, and finding the cure was like plunging headfirst into black water...

Shade sighed. It was as if niether sister existed anymore...

_**H.V: Good? Hope I gave the majority of these characters a fair part.**_

_**Disclaimers: The O.C Berry belongs to LOVEFAN13. The sisters Kurai and Karu belong to Lunara the ara. Thank you! Review please!**_


	3. Chapter 3: The Last Ones

_**Hailfire Vulpes: Sorry about the late update. Been dealing with other stuff, like life...**_

_**Anyways, this'll be the last update for a little while, since I'm going on vacation. **_

~Chapter 3~

Shade stared in a shocked silence as he woke from a sudden nap to see the Dark Garden.

Bodies lay everywhere. Eyes wide open and blank staring to the sky. Arms frozen in place...and without a trace of the cause.

"What..." Shade began, sitting up and blinking. He felt his feet begin to move across the ground. He wove among the scattered forms, seeing their unblinking, dull eyes and motionless bodies. It looked like a bloodless massacre...Shade shuddered at the thought.

The Chao recognized some of the frozen faces he saw, including Gladys, who lay stiffly on one side, arms crossed and bearing a characteristic sneer on her face.

Shade looked among the petrefied Chao, seeing how no expressions showed shock nor horror...whatever had affected them bore no face and afflicted the victims soundlessly.

He was sure not to make physical contact with any, remembering how Kura had strangely come out of her paralysis very briefly, contaminating and freezing her sister in place...was that how it spread? Through touch?

Shade looked up to see a small, child Chao creeping up toward a frozen form, one hand extended tentatively. Shade recognized the toddler Chao, hatched only a month ago. Memphis was his name, and like Shade and Blossom, his parents had disappeared under unknown circumstances. Shade looked alarmed as Memphis reached out to touch one of the petrefied Chao.

Shade broke into a run, "No, don't!" he called to Memphis, who looked at him with wide, startled eyes. When Shade reached him, Memphis had broken into tears. The little Chao was dark purple with jagged jesters on the back of his head, and two blue bat wings that were set to grow slightly broader than Shade's, indicating he was a flyer.

Shade felt awkward comforting the little Chao, as he kept crying, "Don't worry. It's okay..." Shade kept repeating. He blinked, and a dark realization passed over him. Only he and Memphis were left animated in the clearing...

Shade felt a growing panic well up in his core, and he realized the urgency of this strange epidemic. An epidemic that seemed to just...absorb its victim. Maybe not on the outside, but based on the lack of reaction the hospital equipment had recieved with Kurai and Kura...what to call it? It was as if a...void had stolen their essence. Their souls...

A void?

"M-mister..." Memphis stammered, pulling Shade out of his thoughts, "What happened to everyone...?"

Shade looked miserably at Memphis, "I...I don't know." he said, "...just...don't touch them, okay?"

Memphis looked at him through tear-shiny, yet naturally glaring eyes, "Why not...?"

Shade looked around the clearing, "Just...don't." he said, not wanting to scare the child further. He sighed, knowing it wasn't safe to stay around here with the contagious void just inches from his person. It wasn't safe for him, nor Memphis.

Shade picked up the little flight Chao. _Need to find Blossom. _He told himself. Hopefully she knew not to touch any infectants...

Shade's feet were a blur as he sprinted down through the exit tunnel, Memphis held awkwardly in his arms. The baby Chao didn't squirm or make noise out of his own fear, and Shade felt a growing hope as he neared the Neutral Gardens.

As soon as he stepped into the next garden, his hope fell like a dense stone.

The Neutral garden was half-shaded, the sun obscured mostly by a inky-black cloud. Many motionless Chao lay all around. Memphis made a small sound out of fear, and Shade's gaze was rapidly flicking from one body to the next, relieved that none of these Chao were Blossom.

He saw her and Berry standing a little ways off, their eyes wide with horror. Shade, still holding up Memphis, strafed toward them, "Blossom?" he asked softly, his gaze meeting hers. The lavender Chao looked at him miserably,

"We were just talking, then everyone just..." Blossom trailed off. Shade sighed, and he felt Memphis squirm in his arms. He put the little Chao down, and he began sucking one paw anxiously.

Berry looked at Blossom, "What do we do? What if whatever this is gets us too?" she asked quietly.

Shade answered for Blossom, "...We can't stay." he said. Blossom, Berry, and Memphis all looked at him in surprise,

"What? Where could we go?" Blossom cried. Memphis began whimpering. Shade sighed, looking at this group miserably. It had started like any other day, save for Shade's nightmares, and this...thing had happened upon the Gardens so suddenly. And it managed to spread very quickly...

Shade sighed, "We can't stay." he repeated, "We need to save ourselves. Whatever this is...it'll spread to us too if we stay."

Blossom shook her head, "You sound like you know a lot." she murmured. Berry blinked, and looked at her, then Shade.

Shade admitted that he had had a similar nightmare about this. His dream of complete darkness and the prescence of a crowd all around. But dead silence. As if he were being watched, and soon the silence felt suffocating...like dark water.

Shade blinked, and studied the face of his sister, "Maybe I had a forewarning. But that doesn't matter..." he muttered, "Something just tells me we need to get out of here."

Blossom put her paws on her hips, "Well, 'something' doesn't need to tell me that we need to get the heck out of here!" she said, "It's just we have nowhere to go..."

Shade sighed, "I guess not...maybe that's not so important right now." he said. Berry looked at him with a bemused look,

"Why isn't it important?" she asked.

"We just need to get someplace far away from here. This place is dangerous, and you don't need reminding of that." Shade replied curtly, "Anywhere safe is where we need to go."

Berry sighed, "Fine..."

Blossom looked around the clearing, "Are we the only ones left...?" she asked. Shade shrugged,

"It's safest to assume so. We're the only ones left...and we need to get out of here." he said grimly.

_**Good? Okay. I'll be back in about two or three days! I'm going to Seaworld.~**_

_**Review and shampoo a duck...and whatnot. Bye! :D**_


	4. Chapter 4: Survival

_**Hailfire Vulpes: I'm back! And now...hopefully things can get interesting.**_

~Chapter 4~

Faint birdsong echoed in his nonexistant ears, and Shade opened his eyes slowly, wondering momentarily why there should be birds in the Dark Gardens. The sun-loving creatures usually kept to the sunnier gardens. And why was it so bright?

Then he remembered. The Gardens were taken over by the strange plague.

Shade sat up, rubbing both eyes with a sleep-heavy paw and extending his wings as far as they could go. Giving the back of his head a scratch, he took a moment to view his surroundings and recall the events that had happened.

Grass. He was laying in a field of grass. Above shone an early morning sun, slightly shrouded by the foreboding clouds that had surely by now covered the Gardens. Around him looked like an enlarged Neutral Garden, grassy, prairie-like with the sound of a stream or river nearby. Definately homely, for Blossom and Berry, at least. This place didn't suit him, and besides, it wouldn't last, given how close the "void" as he called it, was spreading.

Little Memphis was curled up by a small shrub a few feet from him, one paw in his mouth and a thin strand of drool dripping onto the earth from his slightly opened mouth. Blossom was lying on her belly, both arms crossed with her head resting on them, and her small pink wings drooping off her shoulders. Berry was lying on her back next to Blossom, arms crossed behind her head looking as if she were watching the clouds.

Shade blinked, remembering they were running to escape the void that had claimed so many Chao already. He sniffed, and crossed the ground to stand over Blossom. Gently, he shook her shoulder, "Blossom." he whispered, "Time to go."

The lavender and pink Chao blinked her eyes open immeadiately, as if she remembered already the current state of affairs. She sat up, giving a gusty yawn, "Guess so..." she murmured. While she went to wake Berry, Shade turned to Memphis. The dark Chao was aware he had no paternal bone in his body, and no patience at the moment for any toddler antics, so he tried to act as nice as he could,

"Get up, Memphis." he murmured, "We have to keep moving." The little Chao moaned slightly in his sleep and rolled over, ignoring Shade. Shade sighed, "Seriously, you need to get up." he said a bit firmer this time. Memphis didn't move.

Berry came up to stand beside him, "It's too early for the little guy." she said sympathetically, and Shade grimaced in annoyance,

"If we don't move it'll be too late." Shade snapped, shaking Memphis's shoulder, "Get up."

Berry pushed his paw away, "Let me do this. You just decide what you wanna do now, since we've left home." the swimmer Chao said with a hard edge to her voice. Shade rolled his eyes and padded over to Blossom, who was staring off in the direction they came.

"Homesick already?" he asked, sitting down next to her. Blossom shrugged,

"It's not home anymore..." she murmured, bitterness tinting her words, "And we don't even know why it's not home."

Shade wanted to say the void plague forced them out, but he knew there was still the question as to what the hell it was. Where had it come from? Why did it attack the Gardens? Was it curable, or were the Gardens as good as destroyed? Shade didn't know, so he didn't answer.

Blossom stood up after the silence, "Do you know where we're going now?" she asked. Shade got to his own feet, folding in his dark wings so his body appeared sleeker,

"Nobody knows where we're going." he reminded her grimly, "No one's ever set foot outside the Gardens."

Blossom shrugged, "Then how do you know the Gardens was the only place afflicted? We could have been the last to go, and everywhere else in the world was already taken over." she said, "We could be about to walk into our dooms." She looked up, her blue and white eyes sad, and Shade saw her gaze drift over Memphis, who was shedding grumpy tears at waking early in the morning. Berry was trying to console him. He didn't want to think about the baby's life ending as it had barely started, but he knew, just somehow, it would if they lingered in the void-afflicted areas. Shade felt sunken, and suddenly small and overwhelmed, knowing that everyone was going to look to him for guidance, for leadership. Yet Shade was barely an adolenscent, he knew he had important descisions in his way, descisions that decided life and death for this lot.

"It can't be." he said, finding a reply to Blossom's theory, "This place seems fine, and I can't see anymore dark clouds in the sky, besides the ones over the Gardens." he told her, feeling confident in his answer. Blossom seemed satisfied, and nodded.

Berry trotted up, carrying Memphis who stilled looked drowsy and angry, "Memphis is hungry." she informed them, "We'll all need to find food."

Shade sighed internally, knowing this was a set back to their first priority, yet he acknowledged the fact that soon they wouldn't be mobile at all without the nessesary food to keep the energy flowing through them. Although he knew the local trees contained fruits and nuts that looked similar to those in the Gardens, he was reluctant to try them. Maybe it was instinct, or paranoia, but he knew that being bashful was going to let him starve.

He gestured at the trees, and Blossom was the one to go an retrieve them. Shade took this moment to survey the distance.

Ahead, pale clouds sat heavily around a range of tall mountains, sitting at the end of the long-stretching prairie. They were pale with cold winds and possibly snow, and not dark with void-like disease and malice. To his left was more prairie, and to his right was more praire, stretching far to either side. Shade felt a route to the mountains would lead them farthest away, although he knew he would have to brace himself for harsh weather.

"Shade?"

He looked up abruptly, shaken from his thoughts, to see Blossom holding out a dark-skinned fruit toward him. He smiled gratefully, feeling for the first time since they left the hollow effects of hunger. He accepted the food, nodding his thanks, and sank his teeth into it.

The flavors were sour and sweet at the same time, waltzing pleasurably on his tongue in a way that reminded him of the Gardens' Dark Fruit. This must be similar, if not the same thing. Either way, Shade was grateful for the energy.

...

"...How is this possible...? Outside the Gardens...they're...I thought we were the only ones."

"Suppose not, I guess."

"And...look at them...they're hardly more than children."

"...Uh, aren't we 'hardly more than children' too?"

"...Right...anyway, I can't be sure of their intent."

"Maybe they're travelling?"

"Outside the Gardens? Can't you think a little more, Honey?"

"No really, Lunara. Did you see the DVoid open up over their Gardens? They must have fled from it."

"...Right."

"Who needs to think more now?"

"Now's not the time! We need to figure out what the hell they think they're doing."

"...Fleeing the DVoid?"

"..."

"...Are we going to ambush them, Lunara? We'd be outnumbered."

"Look, Honey. They're three kids, and a toddler, no fighting expierience whatsoever. It's an easy match."

"...Yeah but...why attack them if..."

"Shush! In these times, we have to put ourselves before anyone else. If we risk exposing ourselves, we risk our lives! Either they live, or we live, and I'm not keen on sacrafices. Got it?"

"Yes Lunara!"

"Good. Get ready to pounce them. They're coming this way..."


	5. Chapter 5: The First Fight

~Chapter 5~ 

"Shade!"

He only heard Blossom, but saw nothing but dirt in his vision. Sharp pains were inching their ways into his shoulders and back, and he could hear the terrified cries of the others.

Shade could feel claws raking down his spine painfully, and feel the sticky blood soak his fine fur. He squirmed desperately under the weight that had pinned him down, and managed to catch a glimpse of his assailant.

It was female, dark blue and wings flared, pinning him to the earth. She had unusually orange-colored eyes, and three hedgehog-like spikes on the back of her head. Her face was hardened in anger, and with the agility of lightning, swiped her talons over Shade's eye.

Shade snarled in pain and fury, and felt the vision in his left eye go red. He raised his own claws and sliced them across the girl's cheek, making her grip loosen ever so slightly. Shade twisted under the body and pushed her away with his foot. He stood up, his own wings flared out in a threat display. Behind his attacker were Blossom, holding Memphis tightly to her chest, and Berry standing her ground before another Chao; a male Hero Chao with his own pheonix wings held out in aggression. Berry was hissing defiantly at the threatening figure, fists ready to strike a blow if he made his move.

Shade focused on his own fight. The dark female launched herself forward with much speed and butted her head into Shade's chest, making him stumble backward a few paces. She brought a claw over the side of his head, and the other paw aimed for his other eye, but Shade parried her strike and managed a kick in her ribcage. She stumbled back, slightly winded, and Shade threw himself into her, raking his claws over her face and chest, splashing his paws and fur with her blood. His breath was coming in fast, raging hisses through his fangs.

The female stumbled back again, "Not bad." she breathed, spitting out clots of blood, "but you'll have to do better!" she declared as she rushed Shade again, this time pulling a fake out, stopping before she made contact with the dark Chao and causing him to swipe empty air. She slid across the ground, knocking his feet out from under him, and sank in her claws.

Shade growled in pain more than fury, and the inner child in him quaked in fear for his life. This stranger, whoever she was, was quite strong. Shade was mostly relying on instinct and reflexes to retaliate to her blows, but it was clear that skill and practice backed up her moves. She was winning, Shade was losing...and he felt his life would be lost along with the fight.

With an explosive final move, he kicked both feet into the attacker's belly, lifting her feet from the ground and throwing her away a few feet. Shade regained his feet, but swayed from blood loss. The red life pooled all around him.

The girl was slow at gaining her own feet, and Shade wondered if his futile resistance had actually counted for something. She put a paw to her shoulder, where a deep wound had been gouged, courtesy of Shade. Suddenly, she and her cohort were surrounded by Shade's lot.

Although not much impressive by first glance, it was clear that provoking Round Two was risky with so many on Shade's side. The two assailants were outnumbered.

The dark blue female sighed huskily and fixed her strange gaze on Shade, "Who are you...?" she hissed, red bubbles forming on her lip and dribbling down her face. Shade met her gaze evenly,

"We'll be on our way now." he growled, avoiding the stranger's question altogether. But despite his comment, he did not move. His scarlet gaze traveled over his team. Blossom was unscathed, as was Memphis while Berry's left arm was bruised and a shallow cut bled on her cheek. Other than that, she looked okay. Shade inconspicuously investigated himself, seeing his bloody, sticky chest fur stuck outward in red-tinted spikes, and his face and back felt masked with the blood that had drawn from his wounds. They burned like fire, and unused to such intense pain, Shade felt like crying his pain away. Curling up and just crying like a younger child. But he had to keep some dignity, so he swallowed his tears.

The female narrowed her eyes, "Tell me your name." she hissed, "Unless I should force it from you?"

Shade also narrowed his eyes, "Why do you need to know? You want to enter my name in a sweepstakes?" he retorted defiantly, "Who are _you?"_

It was a moment before she answered, "Lunara." she said, "And this is Honey." she waved at her cohort, who shot a death glare at his former opponent Berry. The swimmer Chao barred her teeth in ferocity.

Shade pretended to look unimpressed, "So...is ambushing innocent kids a part-time job of yours or just a hobby? If I were you, I'd stick to marbles and reading _Teen Vogue._"

Lunara snorted, "Are you just borrowing that sarcasm? Or did someone donate some to a pathetic sap like you?"

"Are you pretending to be scary? Or are you just practicing?" Shade shot back, feeling powerful somehow.

"Are you just acting tough, or have you been getting special lessons?" Lunara snarled, a high pitched tone of anger entering her voice.

"Did you get that comeback at Wal-Mart? At a discount?" Shade hissed, lashing his arrow-pointed tail.

It was Blossom who spoke next, "Why are you two trash-talking each other? Don't we have a mission Shade?" the lavender Chao looked at him, "To escape the void disease?"

Shade winced at his sister's revealance to his name.

Lunara raised a nonexistant eyebrow and smirked, "So Shade..." she mused, "Where ya headed?"

Shade glared at her, "Don't you have some poor, defenseless passerby to disembowel?"

Lunara was about to fire back a retort when her partner Honey laid a paw on her unwounded shoulder, "They're no threat...Lunara." he murmured, "Can't we let 'em go on? They're survivors like us..."

"Shut your trap!" Lunara snapped, "Don't you give anything away!"

"Well shit, Lunara!" Honey growled in exasperation, "We've been fleeing the DVoid for nearly a month now, only having each other for company, and now we've found a whole party of survivors. You _want_ to kill them? We could help each other." he said.

Lunara wrenched her shoulder out of his grip, "I don't need any help, little punk." she growled, "I certainly don't need a bunch of underskilled amatuers to feed and read bedtime stories to everynight! I barely cope with you!"

"Oh here we go." Honey rolled his eyes, "and need I remind you who found _who_ half-drowned in the river and performed CPR for nearly an hour to revive _her?_ I don't know..."

"I told you not to bring that back up, you little bastard!" Lunara roared, "You just..."

By now, Shade and his gang were edging away.

...

Blossom shook her head, "What a couple." she sighed, "tearing on each other like that...it's a wonder how they're...survivors the way they carry on." she mused.

Shade shrugged painfully, feeling the sharp twinge in his shoulder and back as the muscles moved with the shrug. His whole body was throbbing in rhythm and his fur felt matted and sticky with his own life. At times, gray flecks showered his vision, and he was forced to slow for a moment and blink until they dispersed. But now they had come again, this time sweeping weakness over him and making the field around him darken with shadows.

Berry looked at him, "Are you okay Shade?" she asked. Shade sighed, nodding barely. His legs were shaking,

"I just...gotta sit down...for a second..." he said. Blossom turned to him in alarm, and set down Memphis, who stared wide-eyed at the injured Chao. Shade slipped to the ground, a bit too heavily for Blossom's liking, and her conscious pricked in alarm.

Shade tried to remain sitting up, his head bowing forward into his bloodstained paws and his eyes shut tight, trying to ward off the buzzing in his skull and the icy-hot feeling that had consumed his body. Every throb of pain from his wounds seemed ten times worse, and audible...

"Someone get him some water!" Blossom's voice sounded far away...

Shade was breathing erractically, still steadfastly sitting up, trying to abort the faint that his body was trying to send him into. He barred his teeth, and felt someone move close to him. Something cold touched his lips, and he parted them to welcome a rush of cold water down his throat. When the stream ceased, he opened his eyes, and felt the strange contradicting tempature feel vanish. The gray in his vision was gone as well.

To his utter shock, Lunara was standing over him, a wad of soaked moss in one paw. Shade blinked a few more times and a question formed on his tongue. Before he could say it, Lunara held up a finger, eyes narrowed coldly,

"Listen kid." she growled, "Don't say anything. Just know that I will be coming with you."


	6. Chapter 6: Truth

~Chapter 6~

"Coming with us? I was not born yesterday!" Shade exclaimed at the request. He gained his feet, ignoring the slight weakened feeling from his near-faint, and glared right into Lunara's strange orange gaze, "You _ambushed _us. Next thing you know you'd of duct-taped us all up and throw us off a cliff."

Lunara's eye twitched, "I'm not asking. I'm telling you that I'm coming. And I did just say for you not to say anything, didn't I?" she snapped.

"Tell us," Shade growled, "Why you want to come? After all, you did just say you didn't need some band of 'amatuers' with you?"

"I know what I said." Lunara hissed, "And I'm going with you because..." she faultered, much to Shade's surprise.

"Yes?" he inquired.

"...because there's safety in numbers..." she finished lamely. Honey came up next to her, glancing at Shade,

"Why not just tell him the truth, Lunara?" he said, "About her..."

Lunara stopped him, and suddenly Shade realized his team were assembled behind him, almost defensively, "Who her?" Berry prompted.

Lunara looked at Honey with annoyance, and perhaps the faintest of glints of grief in her eyes. She looked at Shade, managing her surperior air, "My sister." she said, "I..."

Honey went on for her, "Lunara had a sister named Stara." he said, "She was part of our resistance."

"Resistance?" Shade asked. Honey nodded.

"Yeah...you see...the DVoid that has taken over the Gardens is a new phenomenon. It's been around for..." he looked at Lunara, and she met his gaze,

"Maybe...three or four months?" Lunara guessed, "A slow-spreading void...it started in the Canyons, where Honey, Stara, me and the rest of the team came from..."

"You were in a team?" Blossom asked.

Lunara nodded, "Yes. We are still unsure if we were the first to be struck by the DVoid, but...when it did strike, we knew we had to form a team of the survivors to find out more, and hopefully end it."

Honey went on, "In the end, we fled the Canyons, with us only the two of us, Stara, another known as Alcatraz and our leader, Clovius."

"But what exactly is the DVoid?" Shade asked, feeling the hatred toward the two attackers begin to fade, replaced by a sense of sympathy and perhaps respect? More survivors...and they knew more about what was happening.

Lunara replied, "From our studies, the DVoid is some sort of malicious dark matter that operates like a virus. We've identified it as some sort of spacial thing, our assumption is a form of black hole affected by an abnormal radioactive wave...altering it. We named it the DVoid, and apparently when it comes in contact with living beings, it seems to absorb their life force. They become nothing more than a shell of former existance..."

Shade blinked, and shuddered, "So...a mutated black hole disease?" he asked.

Honey nodded, "One way to put it." He said, "But it also seems that affected persons aren't completely dead or...nonexistant either. We've seen victims grab onto other victims, and they becomes infected instantly."

Shade sighed, remembering Karu and Kurai.

"But we were forced out of the Canyons before we could fully identify the DVoid. And things just went downhill from there..." Honey said.

Lunara sighed, "While we ran, we were caught in a forest fire. The DVoid was nearly upon us there. Honey, Alcatraz, Clovius, and I managed to escape with minor injuries, and...though a hard descision...we had to keep going. By morning the DVoid would have taken the forest, and anything and anyone in it." she sighed mournfully, "I had to admit defeat. Stara was gone."

"Then..." Honey went on, "Alcatraz became rebellious. When he realized how close the DVoid had gotten to us, he questioned Clovius's leadership abilities. They began quarreling often, and finally...one morning after a paticularly bad fight, Clovius and Alcatraz were gone. We weren't about to risk our pelts again, for the DVoid was coming closer. We fled, the two of us...we haven't seen them since."

"But..." Shade began, "You said you wanted to come with us because of Stara?" he said, looking at Lunara, "Didn't you say she was dead?"

"I don't know." Lunara sighed, "Even if I admitted it back then...I still believe she escaped. Survived. She's not a weakling, despite her age."

"So..." Blossom said, "Say if she was alive. Where would she know to go?"

"She knows." Lunara insisted, "We all know. If we ever seperated, we'd all head for Galactic Peak." she said.

Shade glanced at his lot, never knowing of the name.

Honey explained, "Galactic Peak. That's the tallest mountain in the world. It is the place where the most astronomical discoveries were made. We figured if the DVoid is a spacial phenomenon, we'd go someplace helpful in astronomy."

"I just know...Stara could be on her way there." Lunara said, "And...to be honest...we've been making slow progress with just the two of us."

Shade crossed his arms, "I don't know..."

"What if you met something?" Lunara growled, "You wouldn't be able to beat it off with your skills. We could learn from one another." she offered in a hard, yet diplomatic manner.

Everyone looked at Shade.

The young Dark Chao was surprised at how everyone already were waiting on his descisions. They automatically saw him as leader, and he wasn't sure what he had expressed or done to give them that hint.

He sighed, "Fine." he stated, "They can come."

Lunara, "Okay..." she murmured, "now, we should be heading toward the mountain range over there..." she pointed in the direction Shade was planning to go in, and he nodded in agreement.

The group began their way toward the mountain range as the sun began to roll overhead in the sky.

Shade was still wary of the newcomers, not forgetting hurridly about their ambush. He wondered if they truely meant to cooperate, which seemed unlikely. For Lunara, anyway. Shade wondered if they would secretly backstab them, attack them while their guard was down.

_Well, _Shade decided, _they'll have to wait a long, long time._


	7. Chapter 7: Distrust

_**Oh noes…I'm back in school. I'm gonna be real busy nowadays, and updates on weekdays'll be pretty rare. I'll update as much as I can on weekends, so bear with me.**_

~Chapter 7~

Absolute silence.

Shade half-expected his group to hold an icy quiet upon his accepting Lunara and Honey into his party. Although his trust for them was feeble, he acknowledged the strengths they could lend to them while they trekked. They seemed to have a good side, but then again…

Shade shook his head, feeling it throb in response to his twisted thinking. He still felt shaky from his fight, but refused to show any weakness. Nearly fainting was quiet embarrassing to him, and regaining his senses to see Lunara had fed him water to revive him had pushed him over the top. No more weakling acts in front of everyone else. Shade was strong. He wanted everyone to know that.

Lunara was scanning the area, as if long-lost Stara would be wandering about nearby or just behind that shrub…Honey kept his gaze on the mountains.

Shade sighed, feeling the silence grow eerily awkward, "We should hit the mountains by nightfall." He said. They'd been walking for perhaps a few hours, every silence spell broken by a whine from Memphis, complaining about some tiredness or hunger or other. Shade, bearing no sensitivity toward a child's needs, only found the kid annoying, and was evilly tempted to drop the little brat into a shrub and run. He knew miss maternal Blossom would never allow that, unfortunately for him.

"I'm tired." Memphis announced, wings drooping. Shade's eye twitched,

"How the hell can you be tired? Blossom and Berry have been carrying you since we started? You've barely touched the ground, kid."  
>"Shade, he's just a baby." Blossom chided, "Be gentle."<p>

Shade snorted, "Blossom, need I remind you of something? Here we are, the only survivors of a space virus, driven out of our home, racing against time to keep ourselves alive, and here we took along a whiny, pissy baby who won't shut up, and you want me to be gentle? Maybe mommy and baby shoulda stayed home!" he growled, frustration fueling his tone.

Blossom turned and glared at him, "Hush!" she retorted lamely, and quickened her pace so she was farther ahead and away from Shade.

"One of these days…" Shade muttered, "That kid's gonna get us into some serious trouble…"

…

The moon hung heavily overhead, shedding silver over the partly obscured shelter of Shade and co. The Dark Chao stared blankly at the campfire Lunara had started, lost in his thoughts. Blossom was coaxing Memphis to eat a nut she had found growing on a local tree, and had also fire-roasted it somehow. Berry was busy bundling up the food remains and storing them away. Lunara sat by the fire as well, and Honey was busy looking at the stars.

Lunara sighed, staring at Shade, "You don't trust me." She commented. Shade rolled his eyes,

"Is it obvious?" he snorted, biting into the last wedge of his apple before tossing the core aside. Lunara paused before she answered, stretching her arms above her head,

"Yes. Glaringly obvious." She said bluntly. She cracked her knuckles, and Shade wondered if that was supposed to be a threat, "Why don't you trust me?" she asked dully, as if now she didn't care how Shade would answer.

"Well," he said in an almost casual tone, "You surprise-attacked us, and then you suddenly want to tag along. Shifty, to say the least. Not to mention you're more or less rather bitchy."

Lunara rolled her orange eyes, "If I had a nickel for everytime someone called me that…" she muttered, "But didn't I say you could trust me?"

"No, actually." Shade snapped, "And quite frankly, even if you did I wouldn't trust you as far as I could throw you."

"Oh please." Lunara huffed, "Gaining your trust isn't an easy task, it seems. The girls and that child seem to be fine with me."

"'Seem.'" Shade said pointedly. Lunara glared at him, and opened her mouth to shoot a sharp reply, but Shade interrupted, "And don't insult me. You can't make me give you my trust. Remember you're the one who asked to join, 'cause of your sister, right?"

Lunara barred her teeth, looking genuinely stung and angered. Shade felt regret for what he said, but before he could make amends, Lunara stood up and left him alone, "We should get going." She announced, as if she were leader, "We can make it into the mountains in less than an hour from now."

Blossom looked at Lunara, cradling Memphis, whose eyes were half-open, "Memphis needs to sleep." She said calmly, "And…I listen to Shade only…sorry…" Lunara let out a faint growl and moved to Honey's side,

"Time for sleep, star-gazer." She muttered, tapping his shoulder and making her way to a solitary space away from everyone else's temporary beds.

Shade sighed, rolling his eyes, and began to smother the fire.

…

The night was an inky darkness, silent, devoid of any sounds of wilderness or nature. Everything held a solemn silence that felt agonizing. Shade lay in his bed of moss and down, he found his gaze traveling over his team. Blossom, the one who had completely taken over looking after Memphis, was curled up asleep, the child balled up in the curve of her body. She had an arm draped over him protectively. As whiny as that kid had become, Shade admitted he couldn't stay angry. Not at a child, at least. Berry was stretched out next to Blossom, looking content, calm. Honey and Lunara were nestled in sleep a distance away, their forms barely visible in the night. Shade yawned, feeling the tug of sleep pull on his consciousness. He let them drift shut.

…

"Shade…Shade…Shade…"

Shade groaned, draping an arm over his face. A sudden light had seeped through his closed eyes, dragging him from his much needed sleep, "Go 'way…" he grumbled sleepily, rolling over.

"Shade…Shade…"

"Shuddup…" Shade growled, shielding his face from the light. His body tempature was hovering at a comfortable warmth, ready to lull him back to sleep, but this voice and this light kept his senses up.

"Shade…do not trust easily Shade…" the voice said. Shade glared with his eyes still shut,

"Know that…Lunara…not gonna trust…" he muttered, still half-asleep. A strange glow seemed to touch his skin,

"Shade…do not be fooled by appearances…"

"Hhm…" Shade murmured, relaxing as the light began to recede, letting him fall into sleep.

But before long, that sleep was wracked with nightmares.


	8. Chapter 8: Reuniting

_**Ugh. School's really taking my time away from FF. Seriously…how many people are still reading this?**_

~Chapter 8~

It was nearly dawn when Shade woke everyone to continue their on their way. Glancing over his slashed shoulder, the Dark Chao saw the ominous clouds that shrouded over the Gardens began to spread and stretch over the skies in all directions, including toward them. They were losing time.

He barely had time to recall the strange dreamscape last night as he roused his sleepy sister and her burden of a charge. Shade was almost sure that if they ever made it to Galactic Peak alive, Blossom would adopt little Memphis for her own. Not that she was old enough to be a parent, anyway.

Pushing unnecessary thoughts to the back of his mind, Shade rallied his team and led them toward the mountains, ignoring Lunara's icy silence.

…

By late morning, clouds had begun to hang heavy and gray over their heads, not besieged with the DVoid, thankfully, but with snow and other means of buffeting weather. Shade hoped these clouds weren't going to drop a blizzard on them while they made their way through the mountains. But it was likely. The winds that blew weren't just chilly; They carried the pure bite of winter with them.

Shade found the rock climbing harder than he thought. Everytime he scrabbled to a boulder above his position, he stretched the wounds he bore from his skirmish with Lunara. Once again, the throbbing had returned, and one large cut on his arm had started to bleed when he bumped it against a stone, hardened with cold. He tried not to let the others notice his weakness, and continued on.

Blossom and Berry took turns carrying Memphis, who was trembling like a leaf against their chests. Honey went on silently, sometimes aiding Berry up a rock tumble, unprovoked. Lunara's air was as cold as the mountain weather, and she soundlessly hefted herself up rock falls and ledges. She tried to overcome Shade as they hiked to a higher ledge of a mountain, and Shade let her. Though the knowledge that Lunara was probably stronger than he was burned him, he knew competition had no place in survival. Yet…it didn't feel like it was just the anger of Lunara's behavior that was heating up the young Chao…

"Hey!" he heard Lunara's shout above, and scrabbled up awkwardly on the ledge next to her. Following came Blossom, whom he helped up, and Berry, who was assisted by Honey. Memphis was clinging to Blossom, still shivering.

Lunara was staring at a dark silhouette in the distance, huddling against a spire near them in fear or cold. Without asking, Lunara marched toward it, followed wearily by Shade.

As the winds blurring his vision began to die as he approached the figure, he noticed it was a female. A female Chao? He assumed so, but the small figure was wearing a dusky gray cloak with the hood shadowing her face. She had the cape wrapped around her body, but Shade knew from his bitter shivering that the girl's threadbare protection wasn't going to help.

"Who are you? What are you doing up here?" Lunara questioned. Shade eyed her in annoyance at how she was the one speaking what he should be speaking. _We didn't get this sort of welcome. _He was ready for the stinging comment, but it died in his throat, which had begun to feel sore and raw from the constant winds.

The little figure looked at Lunara, eyes wide in shock and recognition. Lunara stared back into those eyes, her face reflected in the youth's eyes.

"…L…Lu…nara?" the young one stuttered, teeth chattering. Shade saw Lunara's eyes glisten with unshed tears. He wondered if the prickly Chao would give him the satisfaction of seeing her cry.

"St…Stara…?" she murmured, taking a step forward, "Is…that you?" The young Chao's eyes grew even wider, and suddenly she hurled herself into Lunara, burying her face in her belly fur, whimpering softly,

"Lunara…Lunara…" she muttered through her sobs, "I was so scared without you!"

"Oh Stara…" Lunara murmured, her voice cracking with an emotion Shade had never seen her experience. He saw tears slip down her face, and he didn't feel so triumphant as he thought he would. In fact, he even felt a little touched. Just a little. He hid his own feelings by yawning and declaring loudly,

"Well, wonderful. A family reunion. Now then, I'm freezing here. Let's move." And pointedly began shuffling down the stone.

Lunara ignored him, and concern had replaced the look of sisterly love in her eyes. Shade turned around, seeing Lunara was examining one of the long-lost Stara's arms. It was wrapped heavily in some sort of bandage. Stara looked anxious as Lunara picked at the straps, "Stara…" she asked gently, "What is this?"

"Nothing." The young Chao drew her arm away. Lunara gently regained it, and pulled one end of the bandage,

"Did you get hurt?" she prompted, unwrapping her little sister's arm.

"N-no." Stara muttered, "Please don't do that…please?" But the bandages were off already. Everyone, including Shade, stared with eyes wide in astonishment.

The little Chao had no arm. Just a bionic substitute for an arm. The robotic paw on the end whirred as the fingers moved, and buzzed as she moved the wrist. Stara stared at Lunara anxiously, "Are…are you scared?" she murmured.

Lunara stared at the robotic arm for a second, and shook her head, "No…" she breathed, her eyes convincing Stara, "I'm not…I…I'm not sure what happened but…you're still you."

"I feel like _Terminator!_" Stara declared gleefully, tiny wings fluttering. Shade found himself growing frustrated again. But before he could say anything, Blossom spoke up,

"I think we need to find shelter. Memphis needs to get out of the wind." She said worriedly. Shade frowned,

"This is the opposite of progress, people." He growled. It wasn't that he didn't care about Blossom's decisions, or the young Memphis he rescued, it was just that he wanted _to get the hell out of here._ The mountains in winter were damn freezing, there was a spacial virus spreading toward them, and they wanted to take breaks in the middle of the day. Shade sighed, for once wishing he hadn't self-proclaimed himself as leader.

"But Shade." Berry objected, moving next to Blossom, "Look."

Shade looked at Memphis, and the pitiful sight was enough to make him sigh in defeat. The young Chao was pressed as far into Blossom's chest fur as possible, his wings drawn in close. A clear, glistening drip hung from his nose, and the tot snuffed up the mucus, only for it to drip back out again.

Shade felt his pained shoulders sagging, "Fine. Let's find a cave."

…

Shade kicked a stone, watching with some satisfaction as it tumbled down a rock fall and into a deep fissure that led no where. He sighed. When he left the Gardens, he felt like he was leading survivors. Now, he felt like he was leading a band of nurses and mothers, all fussing over two kiddies too soft for these extremes. Okay, so coming here was his decision, but how was he supposed to know how extreme the environment was?

Shade decided he wanted to spend some time away from his group. Get some fresh air. Yes, stingingly cold mountain air that made his throat feel icier and sorer, and his feet numb and frosty.

Shade stared at the path he left behind. The DVoid clouds stretched like ragged cloth across the skies in the distance, barely moving from its position from that morning. He sighed, feeling a scar on his chest begin to sting as he stretched. Suppose he should get back to the cave. He'd be even less use to the team by just standing around out here, moping, freezing…

Suddenly, the fur on the back of his neck prickled. An eerie paranoia crept up his spine. He froze, eyes wide and ears listening for any sort of noise. Shade felt a dark prescence. Something was here with him. Something he did not know…something…threatening…

Shade began to move again, hoping the sudden scare would wash over, but it lingered. The tension ready to drive him off the edge of his tolerance, Shade spun around to see what it was.

Nothing. Just the wind blowing along.

Shade sighed, but his senses were still bristling for some reason. He decided to head back to the shelter…

But that was when the shadow slipped up behind him and grabbed him harshly by the throat.

_**Yippee, cliffhanger! Come on people, I need reviews! I need feedback! Please!**_


	9. Chapter 9: Shadows

~Chapter 9~

Shade gasped, more out of shock than fear or pain. The paw that held him tightened its grip around his airway, making breathing an ordeal. Shade writhed in the assailant's grip, and felt his scrabbling feet lift from the ground.

Now hanging by his neck in the air, Shade attempted throwing kicks at his attacker, along with clawing and biting the grip that held him. But the skin was hard, for some reason, and the body well muscled. He wasn't hindering his opponent at all…

The grip tightened more, shutting off Shade's airway. The Dark Chao gasped desperately, gagging instead as his throat was crumpling. He was flaying and flailing at his unseen attacker, more out of desperation and he knew his struggles were getting weaker. Someone was trying to suffocate him…just then Shade saw the mountain narrow down to a gray pinpoint before his eyes, his strikes growing more and more feeble…

The grip loosened then, as if this shadow thought Shade must have suffocated or passed out, and in the split-second moment his airway was opened a little, Shade gasped, mouth gaping and teeth barred. With a furious gagging roar, he sunk his canines into the paw of his enemy. He forced his jaw muscles to maximum power and felt his fangs pierce the tough skin, slicing through the flesh like paper and feeling them scrape against bone.

The shadowy opponent gave an unearthly roar of pain and fury, and threw Shade to the ground.

The world was still a swimming pool of gray in the young Chao's eyes, and he took a second to restore his dulled senses. The shadow hurled itself at him again. Shade caught the sight of his jesters blowing out behind him. This attacker was a Chao, that much he knew.

Shade stood his ground to fight, but was effortlessly knocked to the ground. A whirlwind of claws fell on him, with such unreal agility and accuracy. Shade felt his warm blood run and soak his fur, and stain the thin snow below him. He screeched, and kicked at his enemy, surprisingly making a hit in its unseen face. The shadow stumbled back, merely dazed, and Shade took the opportunity to run.

But the creature pursued him, and tackled him down with much force again, beating and slashing the young Chao with such primeval brutality. Shade flailed at his enemy again, but the attacks were useless against the shadow. Shade scrambled away on all fours, wincing as the cold, snow-coated rubbed painfully against his wounds and paws.

The shadow was upon him again, and Shade found it pointless to try and defend himself. He curled up, paws over his eyes and simply willed the attacking would just stop…

…

"Stara…" Lunara murmured as she stared at her younger sister. Everyone was sheltered in a cave with the entrance blocked partially with an icy boulder. Honey had a nice fire going, and Berry and Blossom were pressing their forms against Memphis warming up the young Chao.

The younger sister, looking much like her sister only smaller and differently colored, stared at the older sister she thought she lost. She sighed, letting her gaze wander blindly over her mechanical arm.

Lunara followed her gaze, "Stara…what happened?" she gently touched the metal arm, feeling its cold touch on her finger. Stara met her gaze, nodding,

"The fire…" she began in a small voice, "A heavy branch fell on me and burned me really bad." She murmured, "I was really confused and my chest hurt, and I fell asleep." She looked at the gathered Chao, seeing everyone had their heads turned to listen, "When I woke up, someone told me that I was lucky to be alive."

"Who?" Lunara pressed gently. Questions roiled inside her like a violent storm.

Stara looked at her, and began fidgeting her paws, the mechanical one whirring softly with each movement, "I don't know. He said to call him 'Mister.' His voice was really weird sounding too. It sounded like a robot."

"Was he a robot?" Honey asked from where he was heating leftover fruits and berries he had brought along.

Stara shook her head, "He just sounded like one. He said my arm was badly injured and would never work again. He said if I wanted two arms, he would have to give me a new one."

"So…" Lunara said, feeling slightly blown away.

"So, he put a needle in my good arm and I went to sleep again. When I woke up, I had this." She raised her right bionic arm, "Mister said it was en-han-sed…"

"Enhanced." Corrected Blossom.

"Enhanced." Stara repeated, "He said this arm was really strong and had cool stuff built into it."

"Like what?" Lunara asked.

"…I don't know." Stara confessed, "Mister never told me. And I didn't want to break my new arm trying to find out."

Lunara sighed, rubbing her eyes. She found her sister…well, most of her sister, and felt the world seem to clear up a little. The pit of cold emptiness she had restored a little bit. So many months of stress and worry over the little sister she thought she lost was dispersed like a memory. But yet…Lunara sensed her sister wasn't all quite herself…something, something very inconspicuous about her sister was amiss, perhaps. Something…

"When is Shade coming back?" Blossom broke her thought process with her voice. Berry shrugged,

"He said he wanted some time to think. He'd been gone a while. Should we go look for him? He might have accidentally fallen off the cliff."

Blossom snickered weakly, "Yeah, maybe." She agreed half-heartedly.

"I doubt it." Lunara said, surprising herself, "We're probably making his life a living hell with our constant breaks and needs."

Everyone looked at her.

Honey snorted, "So much like you Lunara," he muttered, "To be sticking up for your rival."

Lunara glared at him, "Maybe. He's the one leading us. I think he deserves a little more respect."

Honey snorted again, a smile cracking his face, "Aha! Lunara…if anything I'd think you were the one with the least respect for Shade. Imagine you…defending him against his own team. Hehe."

"We're part of his team now." Lunara said, shrugging, "We need to learn to cooperate if we're gonna reach Galactic Peak before we _die."_

Honey shrugged, "Whatever."

"Shade'll be back." Lunara said, "He just needed a nice long scream."

…

Shade let his pain and suffering explode through a horribly eerie scream into the mountain air. Everything hurt, everything was sticky with blood. His blood. At least the constant strikes had subsided. The shadowy figure had suddenly gone, leaving Shade huddled, injured severly, on the life-suckingly cold stone.

Shade's breaths hissed through his teeth, his entire body was throbbing in rhythm to the pulsing blood from his wounds. At least he was alive. But was that such a good thing at this point? Fire lived in him. A burning, scorching, searing that made tears come to his eyes. Pain with every pulse, every heartbeat was excruciating. His lungs felt as if a vice had been tightened around them, making his breathing shallow and fast. The cold wind and falling snow seemed to aggravate the pain, making burn like dry ice on his wounds. Shade wished he could just shrink away, fade away…stop suffering…stop suffering…

_Get up…_Shade willed himself. With very, very slow and gentle movements, Shade pushed his arms into the snow-lined stone, his chest lifting and his head bowing. His arms felt shaky, but he managed to sit up before they gave out. _You gotta get back…_Shade, head still bowed to his chest, pushed himself to his feet, crying out as he stumbled backward and bumped against a wall behind, hurting his wounds. _They'll be wondering where you are._ Shade began walking, slowly, tenderly, while he pushed a paw into his shoulder to staunch the flow of blood. His feet shuffled as he went along.

…

"I hear something." Blossom declared, and she looked toward the cave entrance. Everyone else followed her gaze. The silhouette of Shade came into view.

"Oh, it's Shade." Berry said. But as he came into the light, there was a collective gasp from everyone.

Blossom shrieked, "Oh my god Shade!" she cried, seeing his bloody body and feeling slightly light-headed, "What happened?"

Shade sighed heavily, and looked at them, "It's…nothing…just an…accident." He breathed, but everyone in the room suddenly began swimming in his eyes. The cave went grayer…the world was narrowing down to a blurry tunnel. His legs…Shade didn't feel them anymore. The impact of his body hitting the cave floor felt like nothing compared to the harsh pain that scorched his body.

_**Anuthurr cliffhanger. REVIEW or Shade DIES. 3**_


	10. Chapter 10: Saving A Life

~Chapter 10~

The whole cave echoed with the alarmed cries of the Chao kids. The first to snap into action was Lunara, who crossed the floor toward Shade in two bounds. Tailing her came Blossom, Honey, and Berry. Stara and Memphis lingered behind, eyes wide and scared.

Lunara knelt down beside Shade, two fingers pressing into his neck. A faint pulse nudged her fingers, indicating the injured Chao's dim yet existent life.

Blossom was on the edge of hysterics, nervously shifting foot to foot and shuddering breaths raking in and out of her. Berry was wide-eyed and struck silent. Honey looked mournful. Lunara herself was shaky, her paws trembling barely as her eyes traveled Shade's bleeding body.

"O-okay." She steeled her voice to sound authoritative, " He's…stable. Right now…" _Get a move on! He's dying, you idiot! _Lunara shook her head fiercely, "Stara! Get your cloak and start tearing it." She ordered. The younger Chao nodded, and let her dark green garment slide off of her. In a few moments, the sound of ripping fabric was heard.

_Okay, there's that. _Lunara paused, and almost immediately leapt back into action. Whirling to face Honey, she addressed him, "Honey, get some of that moss from the cave walls and get some water." She commanded. Honey nodded briskly and was off.

Lunara stared at Shade, who was very still. His dark fur was tinted red with his life, flowing ever freely from the savage gouges and wounds that covered his body. Lunara stared at a brutal gash on the Chao's shoulder. It looked like he had been savaged by some sort of rabid animal…but what? She leaned closer to Shade to hear his unsteady, rapid breathing, and felt her chest fur brush his.

Lunara caught herself suddenly. Her paws were trembling, her legs shaking, her heart beating with such speed and force, she was sure the pulsing muscle would bash a rib or something. Why was she getting so worked up? _No. It's an instinctual reflex to be this way in these sorts of situations._ She told herself.

"Here!" Pawfuls of dark green strips of fabric were shoved at Lunara, jarring her from her thoughts. She took them gratefully, and began binding Shade's wounds with the cloth. Some of them bled straight through, and Lunara had to wrap them twice. With some of the leftovers, she folded them together and put her pressure on some of the worst bleeding gouges. The warm blood seeped through the fabric pieces within seconds and was pooling between Lunara's fingers. She ignored it. This was no time to act squeamish.

Blossom was sobbing in the back of the cave, Berry, Memphis, and Stara at her side, trying to calm her down. Lunara scowled. She wished that little brat would just get a grip and shut the hell up. Lunara's paws were stained in Shade's blood, and she was concentrating deeply to listen for Shade's erratic breathing.

"Got it." Honey said, setting down a wad of moss dripping with icy water near Lunara. She nodded,

"Get more." She ordered. Honey was off again without a word.

Lunara kept her paws pressing strongly into Shade, and her pointed ears flattened in dismay as she heard his breath suddenly hitch, "Shade?" she murmured warily. She leaned close to him.

Shade wasn't breathing.

"Oh…damnit!" Lunara growled, removing her paws, "He's not breathing."

At that, Blossom began shrieking, "NO! Shade! Nonononono!"

Lunara stacked her paws and pressed them on Shade's heart, pounding her palms into his chest to jumpstart his pulse.

Honey had froze, he was staring at Shade with worry in his bright eyes.

Berry's eyes were glistening with tears, but she was still attempting to calm down Blossom.

Stara was fidgeting nervously, eyes wide and scared.

Memphis was close to crying, but kept a tough façade about him.

Blossom was wailing to the skies, "He's not breathing!" she cried, "He's dying!"

_He's dying._

Lunara glared at Blossom, "Shut up!" she roared, and punched down on Shade's chest, counting with each blow, "One, two, three,four,five…"

_Not on my watch._

"Six, seven, eight, nine, ten…"

It was her last option. Lunara just hoped Honey wasn't going to keep haunting her with this…

After pressing his heart, Lunara pried open Shade's mouth, and without hesitating, put her mouth over his. She breathed her air into him, hoping his body and lungs would reactivate.

_C'mon…c'mon…_

…

Shade had felt distant from everything. Half of him could feel his body, half of him felt like his conscious was sunken deep into black water.

It seemed peaceful, even if strange, abnormal, until unearthly screeches scalded him from all senses.

Shade flinched, the horrible sound and vibrations raking him over, snagging his heart in place. He curled up, unable to flee. The sounds…they were getting louder and louder. Shade wanted to add his own scream to the horrible vision. _Just end it…make it stop… _he pleaded. There was just too much pain. Too much pain, too much hurt…too much…

Shade was still on the floor of this strange void, when he felt something gentle yet strong wrap around his torso. Eyes still closed, body still limp, Shade let himself be hoisted from the ground.

What was it? Was he in the Transition? Was he being carried to the afterlife, the Land of the Dead? Was his time, his short time, finally up?

Was he finally…letting go of himself?

A feminine voice spoke to him, "Be very brave, Shade." She said, "Be very brave for what lies ahead…"

Shade may have opened his eyes to see who was carrying him, but he caught nothing more than a white flash. His eyes closed, and the world flashed gray, then white, then…

Awake.

Shade's eyes flew open, and what he saw were indistinguishable blurs and streaks of different colors. His entire body was burning, throbbing…he shifted, feeling uncomfortable. Someone said something, but it was muffled and quiet. Shade sighed, letting his gaze wander unconsciously.

…

"Alright." Lunara muttered, "He's breathing again."

She had to k-…to use the mouth-to-mouth method three times before he heard the air rush into the weak Chao's lungs. Lunara felt wiped out from the anxiety that had sapped her strength, still shaking with fear and cold. She let herself settle down.

Blossom, who had finally stopped caterwauling, looked at Shade, "He'll…be okay right?" she murmured in a rusty voice. Lunara looked wearily at her. The lavender Chao looked ruffled, and her eyes were red with dark streaks under them. The Dark Chao female looked back at the life she had saved.

_We're part of his team now…that's it._

Lunara found herself silently staring into Shade's glazed, unfocused eyes as they traveled the room, not recognizing anything. She nodded slowly, "Yeah…he's….okay for now." She muttered. She blinked, touching Shade's unnaturally warm arm, "Need to keep a watch on him though. A fever's already set in." she said grimly.

Blossom opened her mouth to volunteer watching, but Lunara went on, cutting her off, "I'll watch. The rest of you are probably exhausted." She stared firmly at Blossom, "Get some sleep. We need everyone at a hundred percent for whatever might happen."

Blossom didn't argue. Memphis and Stara were stunned silent, but their expressions looked glad to be offered some sleep. Berry nodded, and Honey passed Lunara another couple wads of wet moss.

…

Cold, silvery shreds of moonlight filtered their way into the cave. To keep warm, everyone was sleeping close together, and a comfortable wave of body heat and warm, sleepy breaths chased the sharpest chills out of the air.

Lunara sat with her back against the wall, not caring about the cold stone piercing her fur and back. Her eyes wandered from the cave mouth, and then to Shade.

The Dark Chao was asleep, although Lunara could see it was fitful. Pain was edging the corners of Shade's dreams, fever sending him the most vivid nightmares…Lunara winced, almost sympathetically. She touched his arm gently, and Shade's twitching and whimpers quieted. He coughed dryly, and Lunara reached over, grabbing a pawful of soaking moss. She drizzled the ice water into Shade's mouth, slightly lifting his head so he could swallow easier. Shade's sleep was a little more peaceful.

Lunara sighed, tipping her head back until it touched the wall. She felt her eyelids grow heavy…

_Can't let Shade die...stay awake…can't go on without a leader…_

Lunara's senses dimmed against her will, the world fading to nothing in her gaze. Just as her conscious was about to plunge into a tempting sleep, she wondered…

Was it the whole group who couldn't cope without Shade…

Or just her…?

…No…


	11. Chapter 11: Difference

~Chapter 11~

_Dark flame shot skyward, blackening the sky and searing the air with a strange distorting heat. Lunara's eyes blinked in confusion, then terror as the fire seemed to take on a mind of its own and pursue her._

_The towering spire of black death remained barely a foot behind her running steps, behind her everything was consumed soundlessly. Lunara's orange irises kept focused on the path before her, her breathing coming in rhythmic gasps. She felt the heat grow closer, and the Dark Chao put her head down and sprinted faster._

_A shriek made Lunara look up, slowing slightly but remembering to keep running. There._

_Stara, tangled in a briar before the chasing flames._

"_Stara!" Lunara cried back. Then her eye caught something else._

_Shade, veiled in shadow, lying on the ground several yards from Stara._

_Lunara looked from one to the other, and closed her eyes, shuddering. _What do I do…?

_Where were the others? Why couldn't they help? Were they…already dead?_

_Lunara drew in a breath between her teeth. This was gonna be close. She whirled on her heel sharply, and with determined terror fueling her speed, Lunara ran at Shade, scooping him up and then charging toward Stara._

_Lunara's claws made quick, panicked work of the briar, leaving Stara to stand, freed, from her trap. The flames seemed to disperse, closing around them like a noose. Lunara grabbed Stara's arm, "We've gotta go!" she said urgently. _

_But Stara didn't move. Lunara looked at her. Was she injured? No…she was fine. But…not quite. Stara just didn't seem like Stara…with her eyes almost glazed and distant. She was unrecognizable. Lunara jumped as she thought she saw some sort of dark spark in her sister's eyes._

"_Stara…?" Lunara murmured, feeling panicked inside as the flames surrounded them._

_Stara turned her emotionless, cold gaze on her. Lunara flinched, "It's coming." She said, raising her bionic arm with a whirring sound. The fingers wrapped themselves around Lunara's arm with unearthly strength. Lunara stared at Stara, shocked, and remembered to struggle vainly before the fire ring tightened around them._

_Just before everything went into a smothering blackness, Lunara felt a a scream of horror well up as she saw her sister, metal and machinery parts crawling over her other arm, legs, and face. One eye pierced her vision with a sharp beam of red…_

_Lunara felt the scream escape, though she knew she had no body. A disembodied scream…_

So it was thought.

A sharp pain woke Lunara instantly. Her orange eyes flew open, legs kicking and wings flared in alarm. Her ears were pricked tall as she surveyed the scene, expecting it to be burnt or flaring with black flames.

Normal. It wasn't even dawn.

Lunara sighed, looking visibly relieved, and suddenly her pain receptors reacted. She winced, rubbing a bump on the back of her head where it had struck the wall in her panicked flailing. Lunara caught her breath, and staggered to her feet, feeling fuzzy-headed and slightly shaky. She stumbled toward a patch of fresh snow at the mouth of the cave, dampened her paws in it, and rubbed her face. She remained on her paws and knees for a moment, waiting for her heart to stop hammering in her chest.

What was wrong? It was just a nightmare. A simple, harmless, meaningless nightmare. Why was it so startling, especially since she had been living a nightmare since the DVoid entered her life. Forget about it.

Lunara heard footsteps behind her. She turned her head, staggering to her feet, hating how she still felt so unsteady.

"Lunara?" It was Berry. The swimmer Chao looked at her with slight concern. Lunara swallowed, feeling her suddenly sore throat,

"Uh…" Lunara wasn't sure what to say. She was caught kneeling over in the snow, anyone would probably be concerned by that.

"Are you okay?" Berry asked, putting her head to one side.

Lunara nodded hastily, "Yep, fine…just…dream." She said, hating how her voice was as shaky as she was. She hated how she was so shook up by a stupid dream. But then again…it certainly knew where to strike her. Endagering her sister? Yes, that was enough to send chills up her spine, but that wasn't all, was it?

Whatever.

Berry blinked, "You don't look so good, Lunara. Your eyes are all red."

"I _was _on watch." Lunara pointed out.

"Right." Berry replied, "Why don't you get some sleep? I'll take over from here."

"It's not even dawn." Lunara said.

"I know that." Berry said, "I'm always getting up early to go swimming. This is nothing new. Go to sleep." She said, waving Lunara away.

Lunara sighed, her feet dragging with sudden exhaustion. She fell against the wall, letting herself slide down to the ground next to Shade. She looked at him. He was wincing in his sleep, constantly twitching. Some of the makeshift bandages were stained darker, bled through. Lunara knew they would need to be changed, but what could they make more bandages out of? Lunara shook her head, feeling too confused and tired to sort anything straight. She glanced at Shade again. There was still a bold red flush on his face, and when Lunara nudged him, she still felt the heat of his fever. Yet he kept shivering as if cold. Lunara sighed, sliding onto the ground and curling up, wings draping around her arms for warmth and tail wrapped around her legs. Knees drawn into her chest, eyes closed. Lunara hoped she wouldn't be plagued with another nightmare.

…

It felt like days since Lunara fell asleep, and she woke, feeling more refreshed, her nightmare fainter. Already a dim sun was filtering through the cave mouth from outside. Lunara stretched, suddenly realizing her head was laying on something soft…and…breathing? She was hearing a rhythmic beat as well. Her eyes blinked wide open, traveling up…

Her orange eyes met a pair of slightly glazed crimson eyes. Hers blinked, and the others blinked. She shot up, gasping. Shade was awake, looking worse for wear but alive. He was looking at her with weak amusement in his eyes.

Lunara's eye twitched. Oh god…had she seriously been sleeping on Shade's chest? Oh god…had anyone seen? Lunara's skin was prickling in strong embarrassment.

"Sleep well?" Shade rasped mischievously, sounding like claws grating down a stone wall. Lunara scowled at him,

"You can shut up!" she growled, standing up and walking off in a huff.

_If Honey mentions this…ever…I'll slug him into next month._ She thought harshly.

She looked up. The group were all awake, busy with some sort of job or other. It looked like they had been up for a while, and Lunara winced, knowing it was too much to wish that no one had seen her humiliating position earlier…

Then she noticed. Stara was standing away from everyone, in the corner of the room, staring at the wall.

Strange…was she in thought? Lunara was about to head over to talk, but Honey beat her to it,

"Hey Stara!" he announced, "Want to…" his invite was cut short and punctuated with a cry of pain. Lunara blinked in shock. Stara had twitched in response to Honey's sudden voice, and had whipped around, and with a flash of metal and loud whir, had pinned Honey's arm behind his back. Her eyes were hard and cold like the stone around them.

"Stara! Let him go!" Lunara shouted. Stara blinked, and again, and her grip loosened. Honey shrugged her off, rubbing his arm tenderly,

"Jumpy much?" he grumbled, moving away. Lunara stepped toward Stara, alarm making the fur on the back of her neck bristle,

"Stara…sweetie?" she murmured. Her sister's gaze locked on her,

"Yeah?" she asked in all normality, as if nothing happened. Lunara blinked,

"What was that?" she asked. Stara blinked rubbing her head with her good arm,

"I don't really know…he startled me." She replied without much certainty. Lunara winced. She knew Stara like she knew herself, practically, and she knew her sister would never reflexively attack someone out of surprise. Was this caused by her "enhancement?" Who was this "Mister," and what did he do to Stara?

It wasn't the only thing that worried Lunara. She wanted to know what had happened to herself as well. Something had changed, or was starting to change…did she want it to?

_**Woo-freaking-hoo. Boring chapter, except for the slight fluff. Heh…I really doubt many people are reading this. If you are reading this, REVIEW. Thanks.**_


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